We need approval and license from the NEA to start operating as a restaurant. In order to do so, we need the shop to be ready for inspection and also submit supporting documents. Liquor license was more straightforward and done online.
Today was also the first day that the restaurant saw it's full crew in action. Previously we were operating on a skeleton force of MD, Ops Manager and Head Chef. Everyone was at the shop today to receive goods and to pack things up. We have helluva lot more cleaning to do for the rest of the week. Surfaces need to be wiped, a few times, tableware need to be washed and don't forget the kitchen equipment that must be prepped for use. We need to decide where to keep everything and label the cabinets clearly. Everybody's morale was high and excited to setup a restaurant. People were eager to get things done and enthusiastic in helping one and other. Also, it's a good break from the monotony of working in an established establishment.
The staff of neighboring restaurants dropped by during their break time to say Hi and left some words of complements on the interior design of our place. Seems like a friendly bunch, them all! Especially, the manager of Grill-out, next door.
The menu needs to be type-setted and pricing of items finalised. It was a long way to get here from scratch and we are so close to our goal of opening our doors to you. We wish we could give you The Date right now but without the certainty of the NEA license it is just not possible.
Hang in there Fans!
Last minute problems always never fail to appear. The contractors sent the wrong sized chiller and freezers today. Then spent eons convincing us that they are the right ones just because they are too lazy to bring it back. The dimensions are too big for the shop so there's no way for us to accept it. The drain hole for the fish sink is too small and rectification work needs to be done. This has potentially set us back by one day on our schedule because without the sink, we can't mount the compressor for the display case, which is coming tomorrow.
Things are really heating up in the shop fast! We've never seen so many workers cramming for space in the little restaurant trying to cut, mount and clean-up at the same time. 2 more days to end of the week and 2 more days to completion of renovation works.
The glass doors are up together with the lightbox that will be our signage.
We think the wood veneer above the counter lends a touch of class to the restaurant. Don't worry about the spotlights, they are LED, so there will be little heat to distract you from the dining experience at the counter or spoil your food.
We met some food and sake suppliers today and will be seeing more of them tomorrow. The European salmon supply is returning to normal but that's not a huge concern to us in the first place. The real bad news is that Japan has placed a ban on beef export. NO WAGYU! At least not from Japan. We firmly believe in quality of what we serve lies in the quality of our raw ingredients. There is no replacement for Japanese beef, especially Miyazaki beef (some say the best wagyu in the world). Yes, there are Australian Tajima Wagyu and USA Snake River Wagyu, but these are technically not Japanese beef and therefore not the real deal. When it comes to meat, it's not just about the animal breed or feed that they consume but there's also husbandry of the animal and passion of the ranchers that determine quality of the meat. Maybe we will spend more time talking about the different grades and types of wagyu on another day but just be aware that not all wagyu come from Japan.
The Big One is still there. Waiting...
The large sake chiller is in the shop! It came on Wednesday when we were stuffing ourselves at FHA2010. The move went largely (pun intended) without a hitch despite the tight space and condition of the shop. The chiller is currently facing backwards to the wall to protect the glass doors as renovation and fitting out is still underway. The exhaust system threw us a curved ball and held us up a bit but things are back on track.
You really will need a step ladder to be able to reach the bottles at the top.
We have more chillers and stainless steel stuff arriving at the shop next week, which happens also to be the last week of renovations. Lots of cleaning of the premise needs to be done after that, then we can move in our tableware, glassware and utensils, to be washed too.
We are halfway through our renovation dateline. Hopefully, the shop will be completed by end of this month. Things seem to be moving faster with each day and it never ceases to surprise us each time we visit the site. With the walls up, the proportions of the shop start to become more obvious. The initial concern of tight walkway behind the counter is unfounded and the kitchen isn't as cramped as we thought. Although the shop is still not as vast we would have liked, it seems like a cozy place to enjoy good food and great company, that the izakaya experience should embody.
We needed to add a new extractor fan to provide sufficient flow for the charcoal grill. It can be seen on the top right hand corner of the photo above. The concrete table in the middle of the photo is where the charcoal grill will be and above it is the custom fabricated hood to ensure customers doesn't get smoked out. We think it may be a little too high up but there are NEA regulations to the height of these things so it can only go about 10 cm lower.
These are the steel support for the granite counter top.
The throne room. Doesn't look conducive for business now because it needs to be cleaned up and fitted with lights.
It's also at this point that we started applying for the NEA license, public entertainment license and the all important liquor license. It can be done at a one-stop online portal. Quite convenient.
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The kitchen tiles are going up fine. The colour of grey with a tint of green looks calm and clean.
You won't believe the size of the rat that made this hole.
The much delayed 3D renderings of the restaurant is finally here!
Above is the artist impression of the interior, showing the counter seating area. We won't have the cheesy kanji on the noren at the end and might replace it with a curtain. The open kitchen is to the left and the feature wall on the right is clad in tinted mirror for the full length. We will probably use a different stain for the wood veneer and the ambience will be cozier.
The exterior facade is covered in stone tiles, with a sliding glass door for the entrance. The signage is a brushed stainless steel lightbox but with our restaurant logo and relevant fonts for the final product. The wood counter will be partially visible from outside. Spotlights mounted on the ceiling will act as wall washers to complete the effect.
4 natural elements are represented on the facade: stone, metal, wood and the glass represents water. Is it good fengshui? We are not superstitious but more importantly, do you like it? Tell us what you think in the comments!
This is the one-draft-away-from-final draft of the kitchen layout plans. It has been so fine tuned and crafted that it is the most perfect izakaya kitchen in the world, or so we hope. Since this is not the final draft, we can't show you the plans yet but be assured that we have spent really a lot of time and effort in getting the layout, work flow and momentum right.
If you don't know yet, Tenza Izakaya will have an open kitchen so you can watch as the chefs labour over your meal. The bar counter has the best seats in the house!
It was as though a bomb went off in the shop when we inspected it on Tuesday. The partitions walls were gone, along with the wall and floor tiles. All done in one day!
Now we can fit proper floor traps for water drainage. I think we need 11 in total.
The photo on the right that you see is what used to be the toilet. Nothing was spared the hammer. The throne room gets a total revamping. It too will get a nice and cosy ambience, similar to the rest of the izakaya. We hope you guys appreciated our thoughtfulness. We will pick the khazi and wash basin on Thursday with the ID.
By Tenza Izakaya
on
Saturday, March 27, 2010
1:44 AM
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The hunt for bowls and plates continue. It's expanding to tea cups and glassware. There are a lot of nice things on the market but it's not always possible to find ones suitable for a business or where the supplier has sufficient quantities for us. For example, we need 150 side plates, 100 tea cups and 80 tall tumbler glasses.
Finally got the HDB approval to start renovation works today so hacking of the walls and floor begins first thing on monday! Stay tuned for the 3D renderings of the shop on Thursday.
In the mean time, the clearing out of the cabinetry has begun. The previous tenant did a really shoddy job in the kitchen. There are no floor traps for the water on the floor to drain away, cooking where there is no exhaust hood and electrical wires over open flames. Leaves us puzzled how they washed the kitchen or avoided setting the whole place on fire.
For posterity, we thought it will be a good idea to post some pictures of the shop before renovation starts, so that people can be shocked by the transformation.
The kitchen (what's left).
Floor grime.
When these shutters open again, there will be a whole lot of difference!
